Study Break
by OrionM42
Summary: Jo needs a break from studying, and Zane makes some suggestions. Takes place after 4.14 "Up in the Air".  And I'm stealing Sydnew's tag of "Sex, Sex, Sex/Hopelessly Romantic". Read at your own risk.


**Ahhh, I wrote something M-rated! Apparently this is what happens when you're confined to bed-rest for the weekend and your husband is away at national guard drill. Be warned: This is my first attempt at anything close to this kind of thing, but it was fun, so be nice, haha. And special thanks to KimMG and Sydnew for encouraging me to try this out.**

Jo wasn't sure how much more she could take. She bit her lip, squeezed her eyes shut and inhaled deeply. _Damn it. Why does he have to smell so good? _His deep voice momentarily broke through her thoughts.

"…looking for the mean anomaly for a planet of 1.5 Earth masses around a star of 5 solar masses, with an orbital period of 2.025 years."

Jo looked over at Zane. They were sitting at his kitchen table, books spread across the surface, empty coffee cups and take-out containers piled up on the counter next to them. He was leaning toward her, pointing at his tablet, fully engrossed in the material. He smelled of coffee, peanut butter, and the citrus and pine smell of his body wash. His enviously long eyelashes were fluttering slightly as he read and she was transfixed. _Why does he have to be so…pretty. _She sighed.

"I can't do this, Zane."

"Of course you can." He pointed at an equation in one of the many books open in front of them. "First thing you have to do is calculate the mean motion." He looked at her patiently, only to catch her staring at him. Her breath caught as their eyes met and she knew her thoughts were written all over her face.

"That's not what I meant," she whispered.

His face transformed instantly, from studiously determined, to mischievous, to the worst impression of innocence she had ever seen.

"Awww, JoJo. Are you sleepy? Do you need me to tuck you into bed?" His grin was wicked.

"I just need a break," she said, trying to recover herself. She pushed her chair back away from the table, and him, and tried to stand up. But as if he'd read her mind, Zane was up and behind her in an instant. His warm, strong hands were on her shoulders, gently pushing her back into the chair. And then they were kneading her muscles.

She let out an involuntary moan as hours of studying and built-up tension melted out of her shoulders and neck.

"I agree," he said softly into her ear. She shuddered. "We could both use a break. Studies show that cramming sessions lose their effectiveness exponentially with time."

She tried to look annoyed at him, but his hands were magical. _God, why does he have to be so good at that?_

"What do you say, hmm?" he continued as she melted beneath his touch. "We could move to the couch and watch some tv."

"Mmmm…" she sighed.

"Ah, but you might fall asleep. We need to keep you awake, to study more later." His hands moved further down her back, thumbs pressing between her shoulder blades. "A game, perhaps? No," he decided, "no, I'd just win and you'd get mad, and that just won't do."

She smirked, but it turned into a lazy grin as his hands kept moving.

"A walk!" he exclaimed, and she snorted.

"In the rain?"

"Yeah, well, I certainly wouldn't mind the view." And he emphasized his point by tugging her collar (_of her very white shirt, _she realized) to the side and lightly kissed the top of her shoulder. Her eyes fluttered closed and she managed a whispered, "No." He chuckled quietly and his hands moved to her hair line, by her temples.

"Ah, well, my dreams of being your Gene Kelly will have to wait for another time, I suppose."

She grinned widely at that. "I suppose so."

"Let's see.." he continued, and suddenly his fingers were deftly pulling her hair loose of its band. Then his hands were in her hair and goose bumps were racing down her entire body as he massaged her scalp.

"Oh God," she blurted out, unable to stop herself.

Zane continued as if he hadn't heard. "You're awfully tense, JoJo." His thumbs pressed gently at the base of her skull, and she thought she might faint. "Maybe you need a bath."

She struggled to find her voice. "Maybe you just need to keep doing what you're doing."

"What, this?" he feigned innocence again. And, again, doing a terrible job of it. "This is nothing." His voice was suddenly next to her ear again and she felt her pulse quicken. "This chair is sort of getting in the way, though. The clothes, too," he added, before taking a quick nip at her earlobe.

Suddenly he pulled away from her, leaving her skin feeling cold where his hands and mouth had been. She shivered.

"Give me a minute," he said and he ran up the stairs.

Jo gave an incredulous look at the staircase before sinking back into the chair with a groan. _He is so infuriating._ She waited impatiently, wondering when he was coming back. Nearly half an hour later she was starting to get annoyed and was just about to go find him, when she received a text.

_Come meet me in the bedroom._

She shook her head. _Seriously? It took him half an hour just to maybe light a few candles and get undressed? _They'd done this before. She knew as soon as he'd run upstairs that this was where the night was going. _Hell, I knew it as soon as I couldn't stop staring at his mouth as he rattled off variables and equations._ They just couldn't help themselves.

She sighed, resolved to somehow get back at him for making her wait so long, and walked up the stairs to the bedroom. She did not expect what she found when she opened the door.

Oh, the candles were there, but there were far more of them than usual. And there was soft music playing. She raised her eyebrow. _He's feeling a little romantic, I guess._ Then she finally noticed that he wasn't actually there. "Zane?" she called, but no answer. She took a step closer to the bed and noticed a box sitting on the bedspread. Her breath stopped short and her heart leapt into her throat as she saw the words on the box.

_Liza's Lingerie._ A sticky note was attached to the box that said simply, "Open Me".

She very nearly ran back down the stairs, but a tiny voice inside her head reminded her that there was no way he could have known. And no way in hell he was proposing already. _God, please don't let it be that. _She took a couple of deep breaths and, hands trembling, opened the box. She nearly fainted with relief when she saw something black and silky inside. _I'm going to kill him, I swear._

Inside the box, there was another note. "Take me into the bathroom. Hang me on the door hook. And wear me when you're done."

_Done with what?_ She looked around again, tempted to look for Zane, but her curiosity over the notes won out and she picked up the box and took it into the bathroom.

Her face lit up at the glowing candles that surrounded a very full, and very bubbly, bathtub. A towel hung on the warming rack with another note that said "Take your time." She smiled. _I think I will. Now he can wait for me._ She opened the box again and pulled out a lovely black silk robe trimmed in lace and hung it on the door. _He's really gone all out, though. This is very romantic._

The bath was luxurious. It smelled of lavender and vanilla, and as she soaked, she felt happier than she had in months. In truth, it was becoming easier every day to look at Zane without pain or fear. There would always be memories, memories that she couldn't ever share with him. _But he's been creating so many amazing new ones. And better, too, in some cases. _She felt slightly guilty at that last thought, but then drowned the guilt away as she sank under the water and let herself float beneath the bubbles.

After she decided she'd made him wait long enough (a_nd before my whole body shrivels up,_ she thought), Jo stepped out of the tub. She emptied it, dried herself off with a heavenly warm towel, and wrapped the robe around herself.

Again, she was surprised at what she found waiting for her in the bedroom. Zane was still missing, but he must have snuck in while she was bathing and left her another note on the bed.

"Lie down and relax."

She smirked and did as she was instructed. Soon Zane stepped into the room from the hall, wearing nothing but a grin and her favorite pair of his soft cotton pj bottoms. The ones that made his ass look divine. _Mmmm…I will never get tired of that view._

"Enjoy your bath?" he asked.

She smiled and stretched a bit, playfully, enjoying his reaction when she did. "Yes, thank you."

"My pleasure," he breathed, grinning. "You look beautiful." He walked over to her, stopping at the side of the bed, and began slowly untying her robe. She lay still, watching the concentration in his eyes and jaw line, but then noticed that he had stopped just short of pulling open the robe.

"Zane?" she asked, purring.

"Not yet," he said softly, and he turned his eyes toward the ceiling. "I need to you pull yourself out of the robe and roll over onto your stomach."

She laughed, "Are you being modest?"

"It's killing me, but yes," he admitted, still staring at the ceiling. "I didn't get to finish your massage."

She smiled warmly at his upturned face before pulling herself out of her robe and rolling over. She laid the robe over her back, just in case he was serious about the modesty thing.

She felt him pull the robe down until it came to rest just above her tailbone, leaving her entire back bare. Then she heard a drawer open and close and grinned into the covers as she heard the tell-tale sound of oil being squeezed out of a bottle. The smell of jasmine mixed with the scent of the burning candles and the familiar smell of _him._ And then she was exhaling in delight as his hands were gliding over her back in smooth strokes, a gentle pressure that melted away what little stress was left after the bath. _We're never going to get any studying done, if this is what I have to look forward to._

He worked her back for a time, before moving to her shoulders and arms, and then down each leg, ending at a highly enjoyable foot massage. He peppered her skin with kisses, occasionally, eliciting a soft moan each time. She felt her body heat increase as the massage went on, and the feel of his hands on her became less relaxing, and increasingly tantalizing.

As he finished, he began making his way back up her body, laying kisses on her every few inches until he was straddling her back and his mouth was warm against her neck.

"Ready for that mean anomaly equation, now?" he whispered.

Laughter bubbled out of her and she rolled over underneath him, using her jiu-jitsu training to throw him off of her and pin him to the bed. "Not even close." She gave him a quick, tease of a kiss before moving down the bed to remove his pants and peppering her own kisses slowly up his body. He twitched underneath her, inhaling through his teeth, and Jo giggled softly to herself. _He's so ticklish._ She had just made her way up to his perfect stomach, when he grabbed her hair and brought her mouth to his. _Mmmm… his lips were made for kissing_, she thought briefly, before he was rolling her onto her back and pushing her legs apart with his knees.

"Impatient, are we?" she said, smirking at him.

"I've been wanting you for hours," he breathed, "and that massage drove me insane." She arched her back in agreement and he moved his mouth to her willing breasts, teasing and sucking before pushing himself inside of her.

They both moaned as she wrapped her legs around him and pulled him deeper, digging her nails into his back as they moved together. All too soon she was tightening around him, and he quickened his pace, making her shout in sheer bliss as they exploded, first her, and then him.

They stayed together, panting for a moment, before he kissed her gently and moved to lay next to her.

"That was a nice study break," he said, smiling at her.

She laughed. "I'd say." She looked at him seriously, then, and reached for his hand. "Thank you for all of this," she said, as she motioned at the candles and toward the bathroom. "It was very romantic."

He kissed the back of her hand before rolling off of the bed and finding his pants. "Don't thank me yet." Then he walked back down the stairs, leaving her to wait, once again, in bewilderment. She reached over to grab the robe and slipped it back on as she heard his footsteps coming back up the stairs. He was carrying a tub of ice cream, two spoons, an armful of books, and his tablet.

"Seriously!" she asked, incredulously. "You still want to study?"

He set the tub and two spoons on the nightstand, the books and tablet on the bed, and looked at her seriously. "I am not going on a six month mission to Titan if I can't have you in my space-bed with me."

She grinned despite herself. "I see. You're tutoring me for the sex."

"Absolutely," he said, his playful eyes betraying him. "Someone's gotta be the first to do it on another world. I take that responsibility seriously."

She rolled her eyes and threw a spoon at him. "Mean anomaly equation," she snapped, in her best drill sergeant voice. "Get to the teachin'."

He laughed at her and crawled back on the bed as she passed him the tub of rocky road. "Yes Ma'am."


End file.
